The Oregon Faith Report - Faith News from Oregon

ABC pulls show after family pressure

LFor family and child advocate Dr. Ted Baehr, founder and publisher of Movieguide®: The Family Guide to Movies and Entertainment, ABC/Disney’s cancellation of its “bigoted” show “GCB,” which mocked and ridiculed Christians, was a “victory for faith and values.” The show “GCB” was based on the novel “Good Christian B*tches” by Kim Gatlin.

Dr. Baehr said “GCB” violated the Walt Disney Company’s own stated commitment (in its company document “Citizenship Targets 2012”) to “championing and inspiring our key audience of children and families” and to help them make “a lasting, positive change in the world.”

Dr. Baehr noted that, according to various national polls, 92 percent of Americans say they believe in God, 76 percent claim to be Christian, and at least 73 percent believe Jesus Christ is God and/or the Son of God and that Jesus Christ is “the Son of God who died for our sins.”

“There are more than 2.3 billion Christians around the world,” he added. “Why would you want to offend this vast audience of consumers?”

Dr. Baehr said he was also disturbed that the canceled program seemed to fit into “old-fashioned” stereotypes about Christians in the so-called “Bible Belt” of states like Texas, Alabama, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Georgia.

“I thought we were supposed to condemn that kind of bigotry and bullying,” he concluded.

Movieguide® was part of a national campaign to convince advertisers to abandon the show and support more family-friendly programming.

Dr. Baehr is chairman of the Christian Film & Television Commission® (CFTVC) ministry and director of its family guide to movies and entertainment, Movieguide®. CFTVC and Movieguide® are an international non-profit ministry, advocacy group, and watchdog dedicated to “redeeming the values of the entertainment industry by influencing industry executives and by informing and equipping the public about the influence of the entertainment media.”